The present invention generally relates to apparatus for heating liquid and, in a preferred embodiment thereof, more particularly provides a specially designed multi-position point of use electric water heater.
Point-of-use electric water heaters are relatively small capacity water heaters which are typically capable of storing, for on-demand supply, heated water quantities in the representative range of from about two gallons to about thirty gallons. A small water heater of this type is customarily used to serve a single hot water-using plumbing fixture, such as a sink, or only a few plumbing fixtures, and is operatively positioned relatively close to the fixture(s) that it serves--thus the designation "pointof-use" water heater--as opposed to being located remotely from the fixture(s) which it serves.
The compact size of the typical point-of-use electric water permits it to be conveniently tucked away in a concealed space adjacent its associated plumbing fixture(s) such as, for example, in the cabinet area beneath a sink served by the water heater, in a nearby closet, or above the ceiling area near the fixture(s). Alternatively, the point of use water heater may be mounted in an exposed area near the fixture(s) such as on a wall or ceiling.
To accommodate the space available for the point of use electric water heater, it may be necessary to position the water heater in one of a variety of manners including supporting it in (1) a vertical orientation on the floor or on a wall, with the nominal top end of the water heater facing upwardly, (2) an inverted vertical orientation on a wall, with the top end of the water heater facing downwardly, or (3) a horizontal orientation on a wall, ceiling or other horizontal support structure, with the top end of the water heater facing horizontally.
As conventionally manufactured, a point-of-use electric water heater must be built in several separate configurations to accommodate these differing installation orientations without undesirably degrading the water heating efficiency of the unit or presenting installation difficulties of various types. The need to provide these different configurations, of course, undesirably adds to the manufacturing cost of a given water heater product line and correspondingly limits the installation and performance flexibility of a given water heater configuration.
From the foregoing it can be readily seen that a need exists for a point-of-use electric water heater that eliminates, or at least substantially reduces, these problems, limitations and disadvantages typically associated with conventionally configured point-of-use electric water heaters. It is to this need that the present invention is directed.